Q: Our homeowners association board approved the 2015 budget to increase dues by 10 percent and institute special assessments each year for the next five years. Read more……
HOA board can accept construction defects settlement offer
Q: For two to three years, our homeowners association has been pursuing a construction defects claim against the original builder. About 1½ years ago, the board asked the owners to vote on whether we wanted to sue the builder. We voted to sue. Last year, at a meeting, the HOA’s attorney said he was entering […]
Homeowners don’t have to change voting rules
Q: Our homeowners association board has attempted to lower the supermajority vote requirement for about two years. Over that time they would contact members to turn in their ballots, hoping to reach the required percentage and include information in the monthly newsletters. Read more……..
Cumulative voting for board seat distorts process
Q: I enjoyed your response to the association with a “bully problem.” Our homeowners association has a similar problem, only the individual is on the HOA Board. The individual has a following that is catered to, responding to their desires to ensure their continued support. The individual controls the board through timely appointment, and through […]
For vexed homeowner, troubles trace to tree
Q: I’m a senior citizen who has lived next door to the homeowners association president for five years. She has a giant tree that was planted in her backyard’s right corner. This tree is three stories tall now and extends over my backyard and into my roof by 20 feet. When I asked her to […]
HOAs can foreclose on homeowner who fails to pay assessments
Q: I was at a gathering recently and someone said an owner could lose her home because of a homeowners association’s legal maneuvers. The same person said that a HOA in Nevada is so powerful that it can, in effect, force a home’s sale. I’m not sure whether or not this person (whom I’d just […]
Owner is required to pay HOA fine
Q: I’d like to know if our homeowners association can put a lien on an owner who’s tenant made a violation if that owner got fined and he refused to pay the fine. Read more…….
HOA must allow everyone in all pools
Q: I am a homeowner in a large community that has three swimming pools. They are informally called the “club house adult pool,” “the kiddie pool” and the “family pool.” This summer, some adults brought their children and teenagers to swim in the “adult pool” and were told that they could not use it and […]
Aging HOAs should check corporate expiration date (NV)
Sara Barry with Leach Johnson Song &Gruchow law firm wrote in about concerns for resident agents, people who are registered with the Secretary of State’s Office to receive legal documents for HOA boards, and about state paperwork expiring for aging-master-planned communities. Read more………
$2 million awarded to couple in condo fraud case
A couple was awarded $2.4 million on Friday in a federal breach-of-contract and fraud case involving a condominium they purchased in 2006 at the Meridian, an upscale complex near the Strip. Read more………
Community should give up the gate code
Q: I own a townhome in Aurora Canyon in Las Vegas. We have had the same code for our gate for the past four years since we have owned the home. We also have gate remotes to open the gate as well, and recently our homeowners association board decided to change the code for entry […]
Judge may have to decide if lease meets law
Q: I am a real estate broker and property manager. I follow your columns in the Las Vegas Review-Journal and was wondering if you can relate to my question. One of my clients has a rental property with a Section 8 tenant. Initially, the tenant signed a one-year lease and thereafter requested to stay on […]
After six years, HOA enforces landscaping rule
It was only a matter of time. Recently, we received a renewal notice for one of our homeowners associations that is insured by Travelers. As anticipated, we were expecting an increase in the premium. The premium increased from $4,831 to $5,507, or about 14 percent. We had projected an increase in our 2014 operating budget […]
HOA can make rules about parking without vote
Q: My homeowners association has passed a resolution (there was no voting) and declared addendums to our parking policy, including violation of the fourth amendment (Section D). I have included the sections that are particularly concerning as text, and have included the entire newsletter as an attachment. Read more……..
State Supreme Court will decide Superlien law
Q: I assume superlien law applies only to the homeowners association. I would assume a third party buying the home at a foreclosure auction for the unpaid amount of HOA dues would not inherit these same “superlien status” and still be subject to the mortgage. Am I right? Read more…….
Rulings on HOA legal issues forthcoming (NV)
Q: While searching for a state Supreme Court hearing regarding HOA super lien, I saw your article dated Jan. 25. I couldn’t agree more with you that the Legislature needs to pass a law that would require the lenders to escrow association assessments. Well written. Read more……..
Communication is key in HOA problems
Q: I own a condo in a high-rise complex in Las Vegas. A water leak from an unknown source caused a little water damage to my unit. The HOA management contracted an outside company to remedy the problem. They punched a hole in the wall and placed fans in the room for a few days, […]
Homeowner is responsible for cost of removing trees planted over sewer lines
Q: I own a home that was purchased new in Summerlin. When purchased, the governing documents stated that all newly constructed homes in the community will have two trees planted by the builder and approved by the association, and as a homeowner I was responsible for their maintenance. Read more………
EDITORIAL: Intense secrecy in HOA fraud case a travesty (NV)
The federal justice system’s contempt for transparency knows no bounds. A culture that has long rejected openness and accountability to taxpayers is taking secrecy to an outrageous new level in the prosecution of defendants in the valley’s homeowner association fraud case. Read more…….
Homeowner disrupts HOA election, meeting (NV)
Q: I’ve been on our homeowners association board for almost six years. At today’s meeting and election, a homeowner sat near me, snarling and yelling. We have had three of five spots filled on the board and when I called for a motion this homeowner made horrible remarks, basically implying we were doing something shady […]
Try one-on-one approach before filing complaint
Q: What do I do when my homeowners association does not enforce the rules? I have numerous times faxed and emailed complaints for a house in my neighborhood that always keeps the garage door open and the community rules state garage doors be closed except for entering and exiting. Read more……..
HOA needs to follow recall process on board member
Q: How do we accept a decision or a vote from our homeowners association board member who has been drinking or is under the influence of some illegal substance? How do we invalidate him? Read more……..
What are the responsibilities of an HOA board?
Q: What are the board of directors’ responsibilities? A: NAC 116 are the regulations that are established by the commission as authorized by the Legislature. NAC 116.405 pertains to the responsibilities of association boards. Read more…….
HOA boards should invest funds carefully
Q: I live in a 117-unit town-house community that is almost 20 years old. The homeowners association board has accumulated more than $400,000 in reserve funds, which is all deposited in interest-bearing bank accounts at .050 percent interest rate or less. Read more……..
LETTERS: HOA board loses valuable members (NV)
As a homeowner within a community with a homeowners association, and as a volunteer on that association’s board of directors, I was heartbroken by the article in the March 6 Review Journal (“Three off HOA oversight board”). I believe the citizens of Nevada have suffered a great loss. Read more………
HOA can foreclose on homes; rent them
Q: I am on our homeowners association board and have become frustrated with homes sitting empty and the banks not foreclosing on them. We have some the homeowner walked away from more than four years ago and they just sit there. Is there an easy way to find out who actually has the mortgage and […]
HOA should have deed to foreclosed home (NV)
Q: I live in a gated community of 154 townhomes. I have a question concerning the homeowners association foreclosing on a townhome for unpaid assessments, and how the board treats that property. Do board members have a legal right to enter the property and change the locks? Read more…….
Speed bumps cause headache for homeowner
Last Saturday, I talked about a new state law that affects homeowners associations’ disputes. This week, the Nevada Real Estate Division administrator responds Read more……..
Condo owner wants to keep lattice on patio
Q: I bought my condo July 1, 1997. The patio was covered, and lattice was placed from the top of the fence to the top patio covering. I lived three doors down from the longtime vice president of the homeowners association. His unit also is covered with screening that is not lattice. He died this […]
Phone area code changes will affect some HOAs
Associations with employees should be aware of the passage of Assembly Bill 482 during the 2013 legislative session that created the interest repayment fund. It is for the payment of the interest accruing and payable on advances received by the state from the U.S. Treasury Department related to paying unemployment insurance benefits. (Meaning, Nevada borrowed […]
HOA boards can charge for copies of financial records
Q: A few years ago I got involved looking into the finances of our homeowners association. I requested copies of documents. Even though the charge for copies was posted as 5 cents per page, the board charged 25 cents per page Read more…….
HOA’s management company is not the board’s boss
Q: I am on the board of directors of a small homeowners association (less then a 100 units). We are near the end of our agreement with our property management company. The community managers started out fine, but now seem to just tell us to do what their large HOA do, and want us to […]
HOA violated state law with letter about owner
Q: I have submitted my nomination forms for a position on a homeowners association board. There are seven people running. Two are on the board and their terms are expiring. When the ballots were sent out to the 1,704 homeowners, a libel statement against me was included with the mailing. Do you know if this […]
Condo owners need supplemental insurance
Q: State law says homeowners association insurance is primary. If so, why would anyone carry insurance other than in personal items? When we have water damage from a water heater the responsible owners pays our deductible and the HOA insurance pays the rest. We have considered getting HOA insurance that does not cover water damage. […]
HOA Q&A
Q: This summer our seniors’ Sun City Summerlin homeowners received a letter from Sewer Line Warranties of America, endorsed by the city of Las Vegas, reminding us that homeowners are responsible for their own underground sewer line repairs between their house slabs and the point where the sewer lateral is connected to the city sewer […]
Requirements vary for HOA project bids
Is there anyone we can contact about a possible HOA board misuse of funds? We are unsure of who would help us on this other than hiring an attorney. Read more…….
Bank required to pay overdue HOA assessments
Q: Our homeowners association’s budget shows a bad debt line item of $10,000. I’m told that units owned by banks don’t have to pay monthly dues and the HOA can’t foreclose on a unit that is encumbered because a bank lien is ahead of the HOA. Read more…….
Homeowner not exempt from city’s leash law
Q: I live in (an age-qualified) gated community in North Las Vegas I agree the citywide leash law is necessary. My question is can our homeowners association make exceptions within our gated community regarding this leash law should they choose to do so. Read more……..
Hsieh lands in court over plumbing problems at condos
Tony Hsieh, who has crusaded to revitalize downtown Las Vegas, has landed in court because of plumbing problems in one of his condominiums. Read more……
Homeowner fights HOA on deliquent fees
Q: I’m an avid reader of your column regarding homeowners association rules and regulations. It’s always interesting and informative, keep up the good work. Read more…….
Readers respond to column about differences between condos and town houses
Q: I appreciate it when readers respond to these columns, even when they don’t agree with what I’ve said. My Sept. 21 column about the differences between a condo and a town house is a case in point. For whatever reason, this generated more response than usual from readers. Read more…….